3. The City College of New York tragedy, 1991
Combs helped promote a basketball game and concert at the City College of New York where nine people were killed and 29 others were injured. The gym had a capacity for 2,730 people but around 5,000 showed up that day for the event, which also did not have enough security to control the crowd. After the organizers closed the doors and prohibited the entry of more attendees, those who were left outside broke the venue doors and headed to the lobby, causing a human stampede. Former Mayor David Dinkins’ administration released a 67-page report titled “A Failure in Accountability” that held Combs responsible for hiring an inappropriate and inexperienced law enforcement force. The rapper settled a series of lawsuits from the families of those who died in the incident, settling the last one in 2000.
